Establishing an environment in which children feel welcomed, safe, and like they belong, is vital to creating a provision which meets the needs of the many not just the few. We know that many strategies and adjustments that we make for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) are in fact good practice which supports all children and can enhance the learning of children regardless of levels of need. Therefore, creating inclusive provision in the early years is key to providing opportunities for learning and development for all children.
Reflecting on our practice is essential as it enables us to grow, adapt and create more inclusive and responsive environments for the children within our care.
Why it matters
For children with SEND, the environment they learn and grow in, can shape their sense of belonging and their aspirations for the future. It’s not just about physical space, it’s about the attitudes, ethos, and values that surround them. When educators and peers embrace inclusion, it sends a powerful message: every child is valued, accepted, and celebrated for who they are.
Supporting inclusion while meeting a child’s needs has a profound impact on their mental health and wellbeing, shifting the focus from trying to make the child adjust to the environment, to adapting the environment to meet the child’s needs. This mindset opens up possibilities, helping children to feel seen and supported rather than isolated or misunderstood.
Reflection supports us to identify what works well in our settings, noting how it supports and enhances learning for all children, but also highlighting how some assumptions, biases or routines may unintentionally exclude children. By uncovering these blind spots, we can make adjustments and adaptions to remove these barriers, giving every child equal access to learning in a way which is right for them.
Putting it into practice
Reflecting on your approach within your setting may happen in many different ways, you may focus on one question at a time or utilise one-to-one discussions with your team members to gain insight from people across the different roles of your organisation. Creating truly inclusive provision won’t happen overnight, or through asking one golden question of yourself or your team, but through keeping it at the forefront of everybody’s minds and making conscious choices to improve your practice.
Asking one reflective question a day can be a powerful way of developing your knowledge and practice as an educator.
*What challenging behaviour did I face today? How did my response support the child?
*How did I meet children’s emotional and developmental needs today?
*Was my language inclusive and affirming? How could it be developed to achieve this?
These reflections allow us to notice patterns, behaviours, and subtle cues that we may have missed in the moment.
Consider your actions and those of the team around you and establish what you wish to reinforce or change about your practice tomorrow.
You may focus on areas of inclusion across longer periods of time, for example you might want to consider how your environment enables inclusion.
Everyday questions - everyday growth
Monday: Were all children able to access the different opportunities in the environment today?
You noticed a child who was unable to reach the sand tray, tomorrow you will provide a second tray at a height more accessible, so this doesn’t occur again.
Tuesday: How did we promote children’s special interests?
The continuous provision opportunities reflected the different interests of children, including objects of interest, play patterns such as schemas and following children’s lines of thought in the moment.
Wednesday: Was our routine flexible and responsive to meet the needs of individual children?
Free play is working well enabling children to follow their interests and engage in activities of their own choosing. Having the snack bar open for 40 minutes enabled children who were focused to choose when they had snack and didn't disrupt their play and learning.
Thursday: How did the visual and auditory stimulation (sights and sounds) encourage a calm and nurturing environment?
Music was left playing after the music and movement session which increased noise levels and may have made communicating difficult for some children.
Friday: Was every child able to have a voice today?
Some visuals were missing at the start of the day which made communication challenging for children who use this method regularly and resulted in more dysregulation. All visuals have been found or replaced and are ready for next week.
Framework for change
Using a framework of reflective questions regularly, will support you in developing a consistent whole setting approach to inclusion. Focusing you to cover all areas of inclusion and enabling all team members to understand where you are on your reflective journey to inclusion.
Dingley’s Promise have developed a reflection framework for those working towards their ‘Inclusive Setting Award.’ This reward recognises continual and honest reflection and adaptation towards inclusion, keeping inclusive practice, ethos, and values at the heart of practice. The framework is designed to highlight key questions to support the embedding strong inclusive practice across your provision, including through your leadership, environments, educators, and transition processes. Visit Dingley's Promise Training for more information.